The Nightmare Saga
by Sorcerer Swordsman
Summary: A hero takes on the streets of New York City, but will a crime-lord and his minion's evil plans end his heroic quest? Now completely finished.
1. The Streets of New York

He crouched quietly and stealthily behind the stone gargoyle, trying to avoid any attention whatsoever. His steel-toed, black, leather boots made no noise on the rooftop of the closed bank. He was as surreptitious as a spy. He was Nightmare.

            He wore all black from head to toe, covering his arms, legs, hands, feet, and chest. Only his mouth had an opening for him to speak through, and even it muffled his voice a bit. His clothes, all except for the boots, were skintight as a leotard, but twice as thick. The mask itself went over his hair, and had two plastic, red, see-through plates over his eyes, an intimidating sight for guilt-ridden men who saw him.

            He hid behind the gargoyle for protection. He had just stopped, single-handedly, a robbery of the very bank he hid atop of. One of the thugs had escaped from him, and just his luck, it had been the one with the Magnum. The cold, New York wind still bit at him, but over the two weeks he'd been patrolling the streets, he'd learned to live with it.

            Without warning, the gargoyle's head came crashing off its base to the ground, forcing him into action. Drawing a breath, he jumped off. He hurtled to the ground until he was about four feet above it, then drew his neck, then back, then legs backwards until he had landed feet-first gracefully on the alley's cement floor.

            "Damn!" said the astonished thug. He composed himself quickly and fired thrice at Nightmare.

            The black-clad figure of the night hit the deck, dodging all three bullets, and pulled back his right arm powerfully. In the blink of an eye, he hit the gunman in the stomach full force, no mercy. He slugged the man twice before the guy was on the ground, knocked out.

            Calmly, he picked up the dropped Magnum and fired the remaining rounds into the sky for all to hear.    

            Five miles away, a cop heard the blasts. The gunman was arrested before five minutes were up.

            Nightmare had already left, leaping from rooftop to rooftop without stopping. He was an Olympic-level gymnast and long-jumper, both of which paid off when he patrolled the streets of New York at night.

            After he'd jumped ten roofs, he landed on a dumpster in an alley and began changing out of his costume. He didn't get past the mask.         

            "Well, whadya know, a guy in a costume!"

            "Hey, Batman! Or is it Superman?"

            "Nah, looks like Spidey to me!"

            It was street punks. One was tall and lanky, another the same but with blonde hair instead of red, and the last short and stocky with black curls.

            Nightmare quickly pulled his face mask all the way over and turned to face them.

            "I'm not going to give you any money, just in case that's what you want!" he said softly, in almost a whisper.

            "Oh, really?" said Blondie. "Well I," he pulled out a knife, "think that you will! We're real persuasive, aren't we, boys?"

            The other two nodded, grinning evilly and pulling out their own blades. 

            "Yeah, we're real good at getting' what we want!" said Curly.

            "I'm still not going to give you any money!" whispered Nightmare.

            Blondie's grin vanished instantly.

            "Oh… I think you are. Get 'im guys!"

            They all charged forward, hooting and yelling. Silently, Nightmare laid each one flat: Blondie with a punch to the cheek, Redhead a kick in the gut, and Curly with a wicked uppercut. But the fight wasn't over yet.

            Blondie leapt weakly up and stabbed at Nightmare's arm.

            Suddenly, something seemed to snap inside of the black-clad figure. He gave an angry roar and lunged onto the punk's chest, knocking the knife from his hand. Punch after punch followed, with Nightmare not stopping himself for anything. His eyes raged with vengeance and hatred. A young voice cut through the air:

            "Stop! You'll kill him!"

            It was a cop. The voice seemed to snap Nightmare back into reality. He ceased punching and got off Blondie. The cop, realizing that Nightmare wasn't insane or anything like that, questioned him angrily.

            "What the hell was that all about!?!?!"

            "He pulled a knife- stabbed me in the arm," pleaded Nightmare.

            "_You_ almost killed him!"

            "I'm sorry, but he had it coming. If it had been someone older or in worse shape than me, he could have killed them. I just want to get people like him off the streets"

            The police officer stopped, recognizing the sincereness and wisdom of the words. "Yeah? Well you're gonna have to work hard. Real hard."


	2. Grey

Twenty miles away, in a building which had a height to rival the Sears Tower, Joseph Alvosta sat planning a murder. The victim would walk into their office, click the pen on their desk which he would have a man place, and blow sky-high. A miniature bomb would have been placed inside the pen. No one would ever know that it was him. After all, once the mission was over, he'd quickly kill the minion who placed the pen on the victim's desk. The minion would have to have no connections to anyone. Alvosta smiled. This was going to be one of the more creative murders he had ordered.

Joseph Alvosta was the owner of a multi-billion dollar corporation called Bullseye Weapons Inc. that produced spy equipment and bombs for the United States government. He was also, under the name of John Van Herkstein, the biggest crime lord in New York, if not the United States. This particular killing was of one of his own workers, one who was having suspicions about his spring-clean boss. The man was intelligent. He had to go before he learned anything.           

Alvosta was tall and muscular, genuinely handsome. He had jade-green eyes and a dark complexion, as well as straight black hair. He was always wearing a suit.

Panting, a man by the name of Thomas Shaw burst in.

"Mr. Alvosta, we need you in the Chemical Warfare room, right away! There's been an accident!"

Pretending he cared, Alvosta followed Shaw into the room, where several doctors stood whispering and occasionally pointing to a figure on the ground. After a minute, one of them noticed their boss.

"M-Mr. Alvosta! So glad you c-could come! Th-there's been an accident!"

"I can see that, stupid dolt!" he thought. He said: "Who was it? What happened? Are they all right?"

"Oh yes, Mr. Alvosta, sir. We think. A Mr. Bradley Grey was exposed to Project 444's chemicals. Are you familiar with this chemical?"

Familiar with it? He'd invented it! It was a gas that ate at whatever it touched, endowing it with extra energy, usually resulting with either death or increased strength. It had been in the Chemical Warfare room for further testing.

"Yes, I'm familiar with it. Is Mr. Grey still alive?"

"Barely, sir. Chemical  444 seems to be having the effect it is intended to, but it is affecting his brain. For the past minute or so, he's been mumbling to himself. It is my professional opinion that he is stronger by twofold than he was previously, but insane."

"He should be moved to a mental hospital immediately then, gentlemen. I myself will escort Mr. Grey to the nearest hospital in my private jet. He deserves the best of care. Everyone back to work! You two, give me a hand with this man!"

In his jet, Alvosta was thinking of much more than Grey's safety. An insane, super-strong man who had worked for him before his accident: what could be better? The key, he knew, was to get Grey on his side before he went completely insane.

He went to the back of the plane and sat by his bedside.

"Can you hear me, Thomas?"

"I am Grey!!!" hissed the supposedly-unconscious man.

"Can you hear me Grey?"

"Yesss!"

"What happened to you?"

"I became strong- stronger than any can imagine!!"

"What will you do with your power?"

"What should I?"

"Use it to seek vengeance on those who would wish to harm you!"

"Yesss!!!"

"I could help you!"

"You could help me!"

"You will serve me!"

"I will- serve you. You were my master before- you are my master now!"

"Who do you serve, forever and always?"

"None!!!!!!"

"Wrong! Who do you serve, forever and always?"

"Alvosta!"

"Who?"

"Alvosta!!!!"

"Perfect."

"I serve Alvosta, forever and alwaysss!!!"

"Perfect."


	3. Plans

            Rushing like a cheetah after its prey, Nightmare dashed home, over telephone poles and wires. He was worried after his encounter with the cop, worried about his future as a crime-fighter. The words were haunting him: "You're gonna have to try hard. Real hard." Real hard. Real hard. Real hard.

            Trying to shut the words out, he front-flipped on top of a telephone pole with the agility of a cat. His red eyelids shone like blood in the night, but the black shrouded him in shadow. Any that saw him would flee at the… nightmare.

            Finally, Nightmare reached his home, a small apartment room on the fourth floor. It was hardly large enough for a bed, and he had had tremendous trouble fitting his desk in too. In daytime, he was a poor street lawyer named John Marlin, partner in the two-man firm Marlin & Dock. The other lawyer was his law school buddy, Freddy Dock, a short, exciteable young lawyer who enjoyed nothing more than a good courtroom thriller. John preferred the quiet of his home office. He was a very quiet man. No one knew why, but whenever he had the chance for a courtroom battle, he would always ask Freddy to take over. He was just very quiet.

            On this night, he was thinking of his tormented past. With terrible thoughts in his head, he fell into dreamless sleep.

            Alvosta was planning. With Grey now on his side, he was nearly invincible! He could rob Fort Knox if he wanted (and had thought about it several times!) Grey was the perfect henchman: strong, loyal beyond compare, and best of all, confirmed dead! Even if he was caught, Grey would never be discovered for who he truly was.

            Alvosta's plans had all come down to one thing. Grey would become his professional assassin. Whenever he wanted someone killed, Grey would slip out from the office building and minutes later a top businessman would be found mangled to death in his own office, tragically.

            "I love my life," he thought evilly.

            Suddenly, without warning, Grey came bursting into his office.

            "Masster, master!!! Someone has sseen me!"

            "WHAT!!!!"

            "As I crawled back to my ssshelter, one of your workerssss saw me!!!"

"Idiot!! Freak!!! How could you let someone see you! In broad daylight!!!"

"What shall I do?"

"Kill the one who saw you! I have planning to do!"

"Yess Massster…"

              
   


	4. Now I Know my Foe

The plot really starts to pick up steam in this chapter, so enjoy and please review

  
Freddy Dock rushed into John's office with a look of terror on his face. He was sweating all over, and his eyes were glancing around worriedly, as if expecting something to jump out and grab him by the throat. 

"John! John, you've gotta help me!" 

"What's wrong Freddy? You look horrible!" 

"I- I saw it!! It was horrible! All gray and clammy and slimy. And the eyes, the awful red eyes. It was a monster, I tell you! It was all crouched down like it was trying to avoid from being seen, but I saw it!" 

Worried by his friend's face, John asked, "Where did you see it, Freddy?" "I-In Alvosta's building. I was there to see a client who works there, and when I came out, it was there! And- he looked at me like he wanted to kill me!!! I'm so scared, John! What do I do???" 

"You stay here, that's what you do! I'll stay here with you. Give me more description. What did the thing look like?" 

"It-it was squirming, and looked like he'd be slippery in a fight if grabbed. But so strong! He looked as strong as Barry Bonds on steroids! He was crawling down into the basement when I saw him. I ran out of there as soon as I could."

 "OK, Freddy, you just sit right there. The firm is closed for today. I'm going to call a doctor and tell him to come here. You look like you might have a heart attack." 

Suddenly, with no warning, a gray clammy figure burst through the window and grabbed Freddy's neck with his bare hands. "Now-you-dieee!!!!" Preparing for the strangling hold, John kicked Grey in the stomach hard, and the grip loosened. Freddy was already out cold. 

Grabbing his mask and throwing off his outer clothes, John became Nightmare in the blink of an eye. Grey looked at him with hatred and leapt onto him. Nightmare punched him in the face and rolled to the side. Angrily, Grey aimed a punch at Nightmare's cheek. He didn't miss. Nightmare went soaring into his oak desk powerfully. Getting up painfully, he was met with a barrage of punches to the stomach, and found himself unable to fight back. Suddenly, his eyes gazed at a phone book on the desk. Grabbing it, he stuffed the sharp edges into the face of his attacker. The split-second distraction was all he needed. With a kick to the stomach, Grey's breath was knocked out of him. Three more punches, and Grey was to the windowsill. Nightmare held his foe's head over powerfully into the breeze and uttered a parting word. "Tell your boss Nightmare sent you." With a hard push Grey was sent to the pavement four stories below. Nightmare could not see the body, but felt assured that he had won the fight. Walking over to his unconscious friend, a thought entered the fighter's mind. Now I know my foe. 


	5. The Future Will Be Different

            Grey had not died when he fell supposedly to his doom. His skeleton was too strong for a four-story drop to kill him, now that he was super-strong. He had managed to crawl back to Alvosta,'s building, and was extremely careful about letting no one see him.

            Still weak, he entered the room with a hissing groan. "Massster! Help me!"

            Alvosta took one look at his slave and shuddered. Then, he grew angry. "What the hell happened to you, Grey?!? One lawyer did that to you? That was your only assignment today wasn't it? How the hell did you fail?!?"

            "Masster, it was not the lawyerrr. It wasss…" his eyes lit up in hated memory, "Nightmare!"

            "Who's that?"

            "His law partnerrr. I ssssaw him put his mask on and then we fought. He wassss- strong. But- it was not my fault master! He caught me by surprise! I was looking for an easy murder, not a fight!"

            "Grey!!!! You let him beat you didn't you!?!?!" Alvosta's anger was rising like lava in a volcano. "You let him beat you in a fight, him who had nothing but a mask??????"

            "Massster!"

            "Don't 'massster' me, you fool! This Nightmare was a match for _you_! If he knows that we are connected, he'll be able to put me in jail for life! We have to get rid of him, once and for all! What is his real name?"

            "Sssssomething Marlinnn, I think. Why, master?"

            "Because we are going to pay Mr. Marlin a visit tomorrow night, and this time you will not lose. Right, Grey?"

            "Yesss massster. You are merccciful massster!"

            "That's a joke. I am going to make you stronger than before! Take this," he said as he handed Grey a vial. "Drink it all, and you will be stronger. You will be strong enough to defeat Nightmare, once and for all. Do I make myself clear?"

            As he raised the glass to his lips, Grey murmered, "Yesss master."

            Standing by Freddy Dock's bed, John contemplated what to do after his friend recovered. Was Grey still alive? He had not found a body when he checked later, but with skin like that, maybe decomposition was faster than in a normal body. Who knew? Second, how had he gotten that way? People with gray skin super-strength don't just pop up out of no where! What if more Greys were on the way? Nightmare could never handle them all! He had barely handled this one!

            One thing was for sure. Next time, he'd be ready. Grey, if still alive, was not going to surprise him again with a visit, whether at home or in the office. He was going to be ready. 


	6. A Visit for Alvosta

            Jonh had a hunch. Grey had been seen in Mr. Alvosta's building. Several top businessmen in New York had been found murdered recently. All had been big competitors of Alvosta's. DNA samples had met no matches when the crime scenes were investigated. Maybe, just maybe…

            Donning his suit and tie, John Marlin of Marlin & Dock law firm decided to pay Mr. Joseph Alvosta a visit on behalf of his friend Freddy Dock and the possible connection between his assaulter and Mr. Alvosta. He had his Nightmare costume under his suit.

            Arriving at Alvosta's building, John walked into the lobby and asked the annoyed, freckle-faced secretary if he could see Mr. Alvosta.

            "Do you have an appointment?" she asked nasally.

            "No, but…" thinking fast, "if he doesn't see me within five minutes to convince me otherwise, my client will sue him for $50 million. And, oh, haven't I mentioned? I've never lost a case in my life."

            A look of fear entered the secretary's eyes, and she called Alvosta on the intercom. A moment later, she asked, "Who should I say is here?"

            "Just say… his worst _nightmare_."

            She laughed at this, thinking it as a joke, and two minutes later, John was on the elevator to Mr. Alvosta's office.

            When he entered the room, Alvosta's voice greeted him coldly.

            "Pretty gutsy, aren't we Mr. Marlin? Coming to see me personally! What would you like to talk about?"

            "You know what I want to talk about, Alvosta. Might I add, the tape recorder is on. At approximately three o' clock pm yesterday, my client Freddy Dock was attacked by a gray-skinned, scaly monster. I think Grey was connected with you."

            "That's ridiculous, Mr. Marlin! What evidence do you have?"

            "I believe that my client was attacked by Grey (I do know his name, Mr. Alvosta) because he was seen by my client coming from _your building_." 

            "So? Grey could have been in my building because he was attacking someone there! The way you're going at it, if Grey is in a building, he must work for that building's owner!"

            "No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that all of your competitors have been recently killed, and this would certainly explain it, don't you think?"

            "I suppose, but that's not enough to justify you suing me."

            "Who ever said I was going to sue you? Face it Mr. Alvosta, we both know how this is going to be handled. The recorder's off now. Why is Grey working for you?"

            Red-faced, Alvosta whispered evilly, "Get out of my office while you still have teeth."

            John gave a chuckle, and left Alvosta with some chilling thoughts to ponder. "All right, but let's just say that if I'm mad enough, I can use Grey's tactics on attacking. Don't sleep at night if you know what's good for you. I stay up till morning, and I can be a great spy. Now, if youl excuse me…" he said stepping out the door, "Nightmare has some business to take care of."

            As he watched his enemy leave, Alvosta picked up the phone. Grey answered. "Listen carefully. Kill Nightmare. Tonight."   


	7. Showdown

            Donning his mask and shedding his work clothes, John became Nightmare and prepared for his traditional street cleaning. Thoughts of Grey and Alvosta were put aside. Tonight, street punks were all that he planned on fighting. This is what he lived for. Tonight was all that mattered.          

            Jumping to a nearby telephone pole, he scanned the street. On a building, only a few feet away, he could see a shadowy figure on the roof of a small bank trying to break in. "Typical," he smirked.

            Stealthily going until he was right behind the person, he spoke. "It's a little late for this…"

            The figure turned and revealed his face. Grey!!! Hands grabbed Nightmare's neck and dug in hard. Trying to break the hold, Nightmare realized something that made him shudder in fear. Grey was a lot stronger than he used to be. Losing his breath, Nightmare gave his foe a nice kick on his cheek. Nothing. A punch in the mouth. Nothing. He was starting to lose consciousness. Suddenly, he used a great judo throw, using Grey's weight against his own, and sent the monster flying over his back.

            Grey landed a mere five feet backwards. Leaping onto Nightmare, he sunk his razor teeth into the masked adventurer's neck. With a scream of pain, Nightmare tripped Grey and dashed to the other end of the building as fast as his legs would permit.

            Grey was much too strong for mere fist fighting. He needed a weapon. A pipe, a rock, anything. Looking closer, he saw a baseball bat left over from a previous heist. Perfect.

            Grabbing it, he barely avoided a punch with a duck. With all the strength he could muster, he swung the bat like Mark McGwire at Grey's chest. He was yet again sent flying, but this time in pain.

            With hatred burning in his voice, he screamed, "Now- you- dieeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Another blow from the bat made the indistinguishable sound of two ribs meeting each other for the first time. Bending over in pain, he grabbed Nightmare unexpectedly and lifted him above his head. The bat dropped harmlessly to the ground below. He prepared to throw Nightmare to his doom.

            Suddenly, a bullet whizzed past his ear. He loosened the grip and the now unconscious hero fell to the roof's floor. Another bullet nearly removed his ear. A spotlight shone on him brightly, and he heard a female voice.

            "Come down from the roof _now_. This is the NYPD!"

            Grey turned his head in panic. He had been seen in public, and Nightmare was still not dead! If he tried to kill him now, he would be killed and Alvosta traced to him. Scooping Nightmare up, he jumped the opposite direction and took the fastest route possible to Alvosta's building. Alvosta would know what to do from there, he thought.

            Nightmare had lost. 


	8. Finale

            Wh-where am I?" muttered Nightmare as he regained consciousness. He glanced at his surroundings. He was in a dark room, strapped to a chair with steel cables. No one else was in the room but him… he thought. The room had one door, facing right in front of him.

            The door opened suddenly, and in walked none other than Grey and Alvosta. Grey was abnormally quiet, but Alvosta seemed to be in a talkative mood.

            "So, Nightmare comes to me again, and this time in costume. Splendid. You know, if I was some sort of super-villain, right now I would be telling you my master plan to take over the world and so on. Unfortunately for you, I have no master plan. I'm just a simple businessman who… doesn't like fierce competition from rivals. So, since I don't get to do any of that fun stuff, I guess I'll just have to make use of this AK-47." Pulling out the gun, his smile vanished. "You would be fine right now if you had just let Grey kill your friend, you know. Any last words, Nightmare?"

            Defiant to the last, Nightmare responded. "Get a life."

            Carefully aiming the gun, Alvosta fired. Nightmare responded. Knocking the chair to the ground in spite of his bonds, the bullets missed him. Struggling on the ground, a bullet pierced his foot.  He use his legs to trip Alvosta, and Grey went into action. Jumping onto his foe, Grey sunk his teeth into Nightmare. Nightmare set the cables on his neck, and Grey could not stop himself in time. Nightmare was free.

            Dashing out the door, he discovered that he was in Alvosta's closed building. There were a million hiding places to choose from. He took the elevator up to the tenth floor and dove under a desk, planning quickly for his next fight against Grey.

            "Where are you, Nightmare?!?!" hissed Grey evilly. 

"Idiot, don't toy with him!" scolded Alvosta nearby. "That was my mistake. Kill him quickly if you find him before me."

"Yes, masssster."

Nightmare was as quiet as a mouse under the desk, waiting for one of the duo to find him.  He blended in perfectly thanks to his black costume. He looked around for a weapon. He would need one if Grey found him first. His luck was much different from the rooftop battle. Nothing! The closest thing to a weapon he could see was a telephone!

Suddenly, a cold, clammy hand reached under the desk and grabbed his leg.

"Got you, you pessssky hero!"

Nightmare kicked Grey in the stomach, the same spot where several ribs were still broken. Grey clutched his stomach and bent over in pain, giving Nightmare his opportunity. He punched Grey in the face as though his fist was an anvil. Grey fell to the ground in soreness, unable to stand again. His back was broken, and he would never walk again. "Masssster!" he called out. "Massster!"

Alvosta came running, firing bullets in all directions. Barely able top stand from his foot wound, Nightmare dove low and hit Alvosta in the groin. Dropping his gun, Alvosta fell to the ground, holding the tender spot in pain. Nightmare punched him in the face again, and Alvosta worked his way over to the window. With a high kick, the window's glass fell to the ground. All that remained was a hole were the window once was.

"Masssster!" the fallen Grey called out. "Help me!!!! Masssster!!!!"

Alvosta shouted, "Shut up! You are nothing to me!"

Nightmare sent another punch and Alvosta was backed up against the tenth story window. 

Grey picked up the gun and fired at his former master. "More than nothing… master."

Alvosta fell out, a bullet embedded in his chest, to his death.

Then, Grey raised the gun to his head, and the life of Grey, servant of Alvosta, ended.  


	9. Epilogue

This is not supposed to be long, it is the epilogue, so don't get onto me because of its length.

            Nightmare stared in horror at the blood spilled because of him. Grey was dead. Alvosta was dead. All his fault. All his fault. He had never wanted to kill anyone, just put them in prison. It was no longer his choice. He was going to be known as a ruthless killer till he died. He never had a choice in the matter.

            He called 911. "Hello, I'm here to report a murder. It happened in Joseph Alvosta's office building. That's right, the tall one. I'm keeping my name anonymous. Oh, and there's someone else here that you'll need to pick up. He committed suicide. Get here as soon as possible. Bye."

            He jumped out the building and onto another. He left Alvosta and Grey to their graves, and him to his job. He could see a street punk robbing an elderly man. Swinging down from a telephone line, he dealt a flying kick to the head.

            "Wh-who are you?" the punk asked in fear at the sight of the red eyelids and black outfit.

            He almost smiled. "Nightmare." 


End file.
